GEORGE TOWN: Sahabat Alam Malaysia and the Consumers Association of Penang (CAP) have objected to the Kedah Government’s proposal to construct a fishery terminal in Tebengau near Kuala Kedah.

CAP president S. M. Mohamed Idris (pic) said the project would adversely affect the environment and livelihood of 2,000 coastal fishermen in Kuala Kedah and surrounding areas.

“Their fishing area, which is Zone A will be reduced and there is possibility of the waters being polluted, and fish breeding grounds threatened.

“We are disappointed with the states decision because the government is not taking into consideration the adverse impacts of the project on the marine environment and livelihood of the local coastal communities,” he said in a statement here Tuesday. Read more →

Dr Zulfigar Yasin, a Universiti Sains Malaysia marine biology professor, said the state’s environment was heading for uncharted waters. He said coastal reclamation would come back to bite the island famed for its tourist spots. Coastal reclamations are going full swing at Gurney Drive and the Queensbay area opposite Pulau Jerejak.

A massive reclamation, which will see the creation of three man-made islands, has been proposed in the southern part of the island to fund the RM46 billion Penang Transport Master Plan. Read more →

MALAYSIA is not a state party to the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol, and so it does not recognise refugee status or provide rights for refugees, including employment rights.

Despite that, refugees have been working in the informal sector all this while to survive, and Malaysian authorities turn a blind eye. They are mostly unskilled labourers who work in 3D sectors. There are also refugees with professional qualifications.

Without employment rights, refugees are often exploited and abused. The issue of employment rights for refugees also affects employers who hire them.

In 2013, the Malaysian Government announced that it would issue work permits and provide training for refugees living in Malaysia, but this plan did not materialise.

Recently, the Home Minister again announced that thousands of Rohingya who have been granted refugee status by UNHCR would be able to take up employment opportunities in sectors that are “appropriate, safe and easily monitored by the authorities” through a pilot project.

There are articles and sections in existing Malaysian laws, and the international conventions and declarations that Malaysia signed, that are supposed to make it legal for refugees to gain employment rights.

Both citizens and non-citizens are entitled to rights enshrined in the Federal Constitution. This includes the right to be engaged in lawful and gainful employment.

Article 8 (1) of the Federal Con­sti­tution says that “All persons are equal before the law and entitled to the equal protection of the law”. Read more →

PETALING JAYA: Almost 46 million across the world are trapped in modern slavery, with 129,000 people in Malaysia enslaved, a study shows.

According to the Global Slavery Index 2016, published by the Walk Free Foundation, there are 28% more people enslaved than previously estimated, with 45.8 million reported last year, compared with 35.8 million in 2014.

The report found that approximately 129,000 individuals, or 0.4% of Malaysia’s population are still trapped in modern slavery.

In the context of Southeast Asia, Malaysia has the fifth highest prevalence of slavery in terms of percentage, placing it behind Cambodia, Myanmar, Brunei and Thailand.

According to the report, there were cases of forced labour and exploitation within certain industries. However, in the context of the absolute number of people trapped in modern slavery, Malaysia ranks 50th, far behind countries like Indonesia, with 736,100 people, and Myanmar, with 515,100 people. Read more →

Two children play near a bauxite mining site in Felda Bukit Goh, Kuantan. Villagers say their complaints to authorities over the pollution from mining activities have fallen on deaf ears. – The Malaysian Insider pic by Afif Abd Halim, January 8, 2016. Small busi

Small business operators and food vendors in Bukit Goh, Pahang said rampant bauxite mining there has severely affected their business, refuting the menteri besar’s claim that locals have benefited from the industry.

“If you look at the industry closely, the money went to outsiders. Most of the lorry drivers come from outside the state. Likewise, the workers. There were some locals but the ratio is small, like 50 foreigners to four locals,” said Suhaizam. Read more →

Posts navigation

HAKAM on social media

“Jom Tanya Saya”

In August 2016, HAKAM initiated the first “Jom Tanya Saya” or “Ask Me” series of live broadcast conversations with 4 prominent Malaysians – Ambiga Sreenevasan, Steven Thiru, Marina Mahathir and Azmi Sharom – via Facebook Live. This series is one of HAKAM’s ongoing pursuits to engage the Malaysian public on current issues via online dialogues. Learn more.

Dealing with police?

#NetMerdeka

#TakNakDiktator

‘I am not MO1’ t-shirts

Tell the world you are not MO1, wear HAKAM’s #MO1GO! t-shirt! Get a T-shirt for a minimum donation of RM20-00. How?

MAPO 1MOCC Hotline

Report any suspicions of trafficking in persons and/or smuggling of migrants through the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Council (MAPO) special hotline at 03-80008000 from 7.30am to 9.00pm every day.